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Saruman
Saruman the White is a fictional character and a major antagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings. He is leader of the Istari, wizards sent to Middle-earth in human form by the godlike Valar to challenge Sauron, the main antagonist of the novel, but eventually desires Sauron's power for himself and tries to help the Dark Lord take over Middle-earth. His schemes feature prominently in the second volume, The Two Towers, and at the end of the third volume, The Return of the King. His earlier history is given briefly in the posthumously published The Silmarillion and the Unfinished Tales. Saruman is one of several characters in the book illustrating the corruption of power; his desire for knowledge and order leads to his fall, and he rejects the chance of redemption when it is offered. The name Saruman means "man of skill"; he serves as an example of technology and modernity being overthrown by forces more in tune with nature. Lore ''The Lord of the Rings Saruman first appears in ''The Fellowship of the Ring, which is the first volume of The Lord of the Rings. The Lord of the Rings describes a quest to destroy the One Ring, a powerful and evil talisman created by the Dark Lord Sauron to control Middle-earth (the fictional continent on which Tolkien's story takes place). Sauron lost the Ring in battle thousands of years before the beginning of the story, and it is now held in secret in the Shire by the hobbit Frodo Baggins, one of the story's main protagonists. Early in The Fellowship of the Ring, the wizard Gandalf describes Saruman as "the chief of my order" and head of the White Council that forced Sauron from Mirkwood at the end of Tolkien's earlier book The Hobbit. He notes Saruman's great knowledge of the magic rings created by Sauron and by the Elven-smiths. Shortly afterwards, Gandalf breaks an arrangement to meet Frodo, whom he has sent to take the Ring out of the Shire to keep it safe from Sauron's agents. After Frodo and Gandalf are reunited at Rivendell midway through The Fellowship of the Ring, the wizard explains why he failed to join Frodo: he had been summoned to consult with Saruman, who proposed that the wizards ally themselves with the rising power of Sauron in order to eventually control him for their own ends. Saruman went on to suggest that they could take the Ring for themselves and challenge Sauron. When Gandalf refused both options, Saruman imprisoned him in the tower of Orthanc at Isengard, hoping to learn from him the location of the Ring. Gandalf observed that Saruman had industrialised the formerly green valley of Isengard and was creating his own army of Orcs and wolves to rival Sauron. ''The Two Towers In ''The Two Towers, the second volume of the story, he is the main antagonist. Orcs from Saruman's army in search of the Ring attack Frodo and his companions. Following Saruman's orders to capture hobbits, they carry off two of Frodo's closest friends, Merry and Pippin. The two escape into Fangorn Forest, where they meet the Ents, protectors of the trees, who are outraged at the widespread felling of trees by Saruman's orcs. Meanwhile, Saruman's army has invaded the land of Rohan, with the effect of preventing the Riders of Rohan from joining the fight against Sauron. Having betrayed Sauron by attempting unsuccessfully to seize the Ring for himself, Saruman is ruined when the Riders of Rohan defeat his army and Merry and Pippin prompt the Ents to destroy Isengard. Saruman himself is not directly involved, and only appears again in chapter 10, "The Voice of Saruman", by which time he is trapped in Orthanc. He fails in his attempt to negotiate with the Rohirrim and with Gandalf, and rejects Gandalf's conditional offer to let him go free. Gandalf casts him out of the White Council and the order of the wizards, and breaks Saruman's staff. ''The Return of the King Saruman makes his final appearance at the end of the last volume, ''The Return of the King, after Sauron's defeat. After persuading the Ents to release him from Orthanc, he travels north on foot, apparently reduced to begging. He is accompanied by his servant Gríma Wormtongue, whom he beats and curses. When they reach the Shire, Saruman's agents—both Hobbits and Men—have already taken it over and started a destructive process of modernization. Saruman governs the Shire in secret under the name of Sharkey until the events of Chapter 8 ("The Scouring of the Shire") in which Frodo and his companions return and lead a rebellion, defeating the intruders and exposing Saruman's role. He tries to kill Frodo, who subdues him and allows him to leave. He tries to kill Frodo, who subdues him and allows him to leave. As he turns to leave, he mocks Wormtongue and reveals that he murdered Frodo's relative Lotho Sackville-Baggins; the long-suffering Wormtongue snaps and cuts Saruman's throat before being felled by Hobbit arrows. 'Other books' Consistent accounts of Saruman's earlier history appear in Appendix B to The Lord of the Rings, first published in The Return of the King, and in the posthumously published The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales; all were written in the mid-1950s. Saruman, like Gandalf and Radagast the Brown, is one of five 'wizards', known as the Istari, who begin to arrive in Middle-earth circa two thousand years before the beginning of The Lord of the Rings. They are Maiar, envoys of the godlike Valar sent to challenge Sauron by inspiring the people of Middle-earth rather than by direct conflict. Tolkien regarded them as being somewhat like incarnate angels. Saruman initially traveled in the east; he was later appointed head of the White Council and eventually settles at Gondor's outpost of Isengard. Fifty years before The Lord of the Rings, after his studies reveal that the One Ring might be found in the river Anduin near Sauron's stronghold at Dol Guldur, he helps the White Council drive out Sauron in order to facilitate his search. Creation and development Set Appearances *LEGO The Lord of the Rings: The Video Game Gallery Saruman 2.jpg Saruman3.jpg Category:Antagonist Category:Minifigure Category:Wizard Category:Video Game Exclusive Category:2012 Category:The Hobbit Category:The Two Towers Category:Man Category:Male Category:Leader Category:Fictional characters introduced in 1954